Just A Favor
by MyFallenAngel
Summary: SasuSaku, discontinued. She is tired of being pushed away, her pride always being trodden on. This time, he just has to accept whatever it is. It's just a favor, right? Nothing else. I'll help you, Lee san.


.: disclaimer: Naruto is not mine :.

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**.: Just A Favor :.**

_Story dedicated to my most loyal readers. Thanks for having the patience upon my late updates, stupidities, et cetera. I love you all. _

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Once you fall in love, you begin to see things in a very different perspective, Hyuuga Neji concluded on a sunny Sunday morning as he woke up from his late night's peaceful slumber.

Tenten. She was the weapon mistress of Konoha who wore her hair in two buns, like a panda. Now, she is still the weapon mistress of Konoha who wore her hair in buns, but there were many other definitions to her. She was Tenten, his goddess-like teammate, his comrade, a person he trusted the most, and a woman he loved as a man.

Back then, she was only a stranger. Now, he would die for her if he needs to.

Funny how time could change everything: the invisible distance between their hearts, the inevitable contacts they shared... It's even funnier how a woman could change him - she melted the ice cube in his heart and has him fall for her.

Badly.

It happened, and it was inevitable.

So as Hyuuga Neji brushed his teeth, took a bath and went out of the Hyuuga clan's prestigious compound, like he usually did every morning, he decided that inevitable was his favorite word right now.

Everything in the past few weeks has been pretty decent. They has gone shopping together, trained with each other each and every day of the week, and pretty much has a little date after they finished training. He would walk her home, have a nice little chat with her, and go home to his own complex.

This routine has been going for around two weeks, and Neji decided that he liked this new routine.

Entering their usual training grounds, our Hyuuga prodigy smirked when he saw the lithe form of his only female teammate and love interest as well. He was about to give a little "Hn." to acknowledge her, but a sight of someone stopped him from doing so.

Uzumaki Naruto was with the girl, laughing with Tenten as the girl blushed sweetly, her back facing Neji.

The Hyuuga prodigy clenched his fist without even realizing it, as he approached them. Naruto immediately stopped laughing and jumped up.

"Hi there, Neji!" He greeted as Tenten turned at him and smiled reflexively. It was almost impossible not to smile whenever you see the Hyuuga Neji showing a little emotion. In this case, he was with the slightest hint of shock.

"Naruto." Neji said flatly, "Why are you here... with Tenten?"

"Why am I here, you ask!" Naruto grinned at him stupidly, his hand reaching for the weapon mistress' shoulder initiatively. "Of course I'm here to see Tenten! I love Tenten very much!" He said sarcastically as he eyed the prodigy.

_Ooh_, did he tense up just now, or was it only his imagination?

Tenten, too, stared at Neji silently, examining the usually cool and pale eyes of the eighteen years old man. Was that jealousy in his eyes? No, probably it was only a trick of the light, since she knew – or she thought she knew - that he wasn't capable of being jealous.

Why would he be, anyway? They were only teammates.

"Anyway, I'm going now." Naruto announced, tapping Tenten's shoulder lightly. He leaped up to the closest tree branch and touched the branch to steady himself, "Tell Fuzzy Brows I'm looking for him, Tenten!"

She nodded, and he went away. The weapon mistress turned at Neji and smiled casually, "Come on, Neji! Don't stare at me like an idiot!" She exclaimed, standing unhurriedly as she put her hands on her hip, "I will never let you be the only jounin in our team!"

"Hn." He smirked, "Now why was Naruto here, Tenten?"

Tenten glared at him. She has thought that this question will come sooner or later, but she didn't expect him to be this curious and made the priority of the question first, delaying their first spar match of the day. It was so un-Neji-like, but she was going to put it aside right now. "You heard him."

"What did I hear? About how he really loves you?" Neji's voice was low, but she could swear that it was clouded with mocks. "That is not even possible, Tenten."

"And why is that?" She looked more than a little hurt as she extracted two scrolls out of her waist pouch and planted them on the ground hastily.

Neji smirked again, and said, "The thought of you and him have never really crossed my mind before, Tenten, believe me." He reasoned, readying himself as his form turned into the graceful taijutsu style of the Hyuuga's.

"So who do you ever imagine suits me?" She asked hoarsely as her hands started to move swiftly, doing hand seals as she lowered her body and maximized her concentration.

He looked thoughtful for a while. "Oh, a clan member such as Uchiha Sasuke, probably." He stated. _And myself._

"Really..." She smirked as her scrolls spiraled to the air. She rose in the middle of it, summoning her weapons by slapping the scrolls quickly, crying, "Soushouryu (Twin Rising Dragons)!"

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**.: Part 1 : Rising Hurricanes :.**

_Chapter dedicated to those who call SasuSaku as a normal pair and love 'em as much as I do. _

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Naruto leaped from trees to trees, feeling more than a little impatient. Now where was that Lee guy when he needed him? He owed him something! Lee was supposed to treat him a bowl of Beef Ramen for Naruto has won the bet between them - the one about Kakashi and Gai's latest competition upon a breakfast at the Ichiraku.

Naruto has bet for Kakashi while Lee, obviously, has bet for Gai.

Unfortunately for that green beast of Konoha, this time Gai lost. The score ended 142-143 for Kakashi, and Lee has promised Naruto a bowl of the exclusive Beef Ramen from Ichiraku Bar.

The kyuubi boy leaped down to the sandy ground and ran off to Ichiraku, his hand reaching for his Gama-chan - his frog-shaped favorite wallet and weighting the coins in it, just in case he needed to buy his own breakfast today.

He opened the curtains of the Ichiraku Ramen Bar, only to find that Lee wasn't there. Instead, Hyuuga Hinata was, sipping a cup of hot milk tea.

"Hi there, Hinata-chan!" Naruto greeted cheerfully, sitting beside her as he patted her shoulder gently. "Have you seen Fuzzy Brows?"

"Na-Naruto-kun... Fuzzy Brows? Lee-san?" The girl inquired, confused about Naruto's nicknames towards one of the greatest exclusive taijutsu specialist in Konoha.

He nodded, "Have you seen him?" He asked again.

Hinata shook her head, smiling shyly, "N-no, Naruto-kun... Is there anything I can help y-you with?" She asked kindly, brushing her bangs away from her pale, cool eyes, to the right and started to twiddle her fingers nervously.

"Well, if you meet him, just tell him that I am looking for him!" The kyuubi boy said loudly, as he eyed the Ramen menu on the table. He looked at it for a while and turned towards the owner of Ichiraku. "Hey, Old Man! I want a large portion of Seafood Ramen, please!"

The old man nodded, smiling generously. As he entered the backdoor which leads to the kitchen, he muttered, "Eat much, work much, play much! That's the life of boys nowadays! Good, good!"

Naruto turned to Hinata, smiling at her. "Do you want anything, Hinata-chan?" He offered kindly, "It's my treat!"

The Hyuuga heiress shook her head as a refusal. "No, t-thanks, Naruto-kun... I am waiting for Shino-kun here..." She replied softly, her voice almost inaudible. Just as she said that, a passing girl yelled and her voice died down.

"What, Hinata-chan? Can't hear you!"

"N-no... Thanks, Naruto-kun..!" Poor Hinata stuttered, "I am waiting for Shino-kun..."

"I see!" Naruto smiled, "What are you going to do with Shino, Hinata?"

"Anoo... Shino-kun... Shino-kun promised to help me train my newest jutsu today...!" The shy girl replied, colors flooding her face. She has trained day per day, either with Shino or Kiba, remembering that they were teammates.

"Ooh! Your newest jutsu!" Naruto clasped his hand cheerfully. He was always excited talking about jutsus with any shinobi or kunoichi, and Hinata was a good kunoichi, in this case. "Is it the one Neji also has? Like, his Hakkeshou Kaiten?"

Poor Hinata, really. Her face reddened more as she stuttered her reply, "N-no, Naruto-kun... Mine is Hyaku Retsu Sho..." She said, "It's... also c-called One Hundred Violent Pa-palms..!"

"I see," Naruto enquired, looking thoughtful, "Must be interesting, ne? What training methods do Shino uses?"

"Hmm... Ano..." Hinata looked as if she wanted to faint from all the questions Naruto pondered out loud. "Shino-kun uses his bugs... a-and I'll apply the jutsu..."

As soon as she finished talking, Aburame Shino entered the bar, his appearance as creepy but cool as usual. "Hinata." He said, his voice dark yet deep. The Hyuuga heiress smiled softly at him, "Hi the-there, Shino-kun!"

"Hey, Shino!" Naruto also greeted, tapping the mysterious boy's back, a bit too happily. It can't be denied that he was always distracted by Shino's silent demeanor, although he could see that Hinata was used to him.

Shino put his hands into his pockets, his eyes behind his sunglasses, always unrevealed as Hinata stood up from her seat. She left a certain amount of money on the table and blushed sweetly as she said, "N-Naruto-kun, we're going, then... S-see you next ti-time..."

The blonde nodded. "Okay! Bye, Hinata, Shino!"

They both hurried off without replies, leaving Naruto deadpanned, but his concentration was soon taken away by a bowl of hot, seafood ramen that smelt delicious.

"Thanks, Old Man!" He said happily, clasping his hand together, "Itadakimasu!"

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"Jeez. Where is that boy?" Uchiha Sasuke grumbled as he leaned on the tree, his arms crossed over his chest as a pink-haired kunoichi also grumbled beside him. "He's late." She commented unhappily, also crossing her arms over her chest. "Again. And Kakashi-sensei is late too, as usual."

Even if Kakashi was not their sensei anymore, she was still used to calling him a sensei.

"Hmm." Sasuke replied, closing his eyes. It was no wonder that Hatake Kakashi was late - he was always late. If he was not, then something miraculous must have happened somewhere around the world. Call him weird, but Kakashi was always late. Never not.

And it seemed to both him and Sakura that Kakashi's lateness was contagious - now Naruto began taking chances and entering the grounds late. If the Copy Ninja's lame reason was that he's lost in the road of life, Naruto would claim that he was lost in the _road of ramen_. It's lamer.

"Ne, Sasuke-kun, do you think we better start training now?" Sakura asked, her pretty face gleaming beneath the sunlight, "It would be a waste of time to not." She has grown fond of training now - she was even almost at the same level with Sasuke and Naruto. And yes, she has been over her crazy Sasuke obsession, and was now mature.

Sasuke opened his eyes and scanned the training ground heavily. There was no sign of either Kakashi or Naruto, and it would be best for them to start training now than just slack off like this, doing nothing and benefiting nobody.

Sakura has put on her gloves, on her face a determined expression. She smiled ghostly at him and leaped backwards three meters, readying herself if he attacks all of a sudden. The Uchiha closed his eyes and opened them again, activating his full-developed Sharingan in process.

"Come on." He taunted, readying his kunais between his fingers professionally.

"He's a gorgeous bastard!" Inner Sakura yelled, almost sarcastically, as Outer Sakura concentrated on her chakra, ready to power up with her second personality. "Meruhan Getto (Fairy Tale Gate)!" She cried, performing the D-ranked offensive jutsu. "Go!" Inner Sakura cried again, enhancing her speed and power. The pink-haired ran forward in an almost invisible speed, making Sasuke on alert at once.

He avoided and dodged almost every punch Sakura thrown at him, but when she delivered the last powerful kick, she managed to bruise him a little. Before he leaped backwards himself, he has applied hand seals and yelled, "Katon: Goukakyou no Jutsu (Fire Element: Great Fireball Technique)!" and sent a large fireball at her from his mouth.

Sakura thrown herself backwards, cart wheeling as she avoided the jutsu perfectly, as expected from the subordinate of the only female Sannin: Tsunade-sama, the Fifth Hokage herself. Sasuke smirked. Looks like he got himself a very nice, equal sparring partner this time.

The pink-haired kunoichi landed on her feet, jumping backwards and holding up her gloved hand in a fist at him, her lips sending a mocking smile. She readied herself, her hands swift doing hand seals Sasuke failed to recognize. Before he even knew it, she has whispered, "Sakura Fubuki no Jutsu (Cherry Blossom Blizzard Technique)..."

About a thousand kunais flew from her towards Sasuke, each tied with a small sack of mini explosive tags. Sasuke's eyes widened - he hasn't seen that technique for years - and to defend himself, he pulled out a fuuma shuriken and threw it towards the kunais, deflecting them yet exploding the tags in the same time, but managed to get himself lively and sound.

Sakura was about to launch another attack when someone wearing a green spandex dashed between them, stopping her hand seals and making Sasuke glaring.

"Lee-san!" The pink-haired kunoichi exclaimed, her hands on her sides. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh hello there, Sakura-san!" Rock Lee said, a squirrel on his shoulder as he rubbed the squirrel's head gently. Sakura mustered a gentle smile - it was one thing she likes about Lee. He was so kind, even to animals. The green beast of Konoha smiled at her, "I am just passing by. Have you seen Naruto-kun?"

"No." It was Sasuke who replied. "He's not here."

"I see!" Lee said, "Can you do me a favor please, Sakura-san?"

"Hmm?" Sakura looked at Lee, wide-eyes. It was not often when the taijutsu master asked for a favor from her, moreover. Usually it was him who helped her to do things. "Yes, of course, Lee-san, I would if I could. What is it?"

The green beast of Konoha stared at the pink-haired kunoichi, in his head images flying.

_-flashback-_

_Lee, Neji and Tenten were having ramen in Ichiraku Ramen Bar, all equally tired by their latest mission - a B-ranked one, that was, to get back the Hidden Rain's Feudal Lord's daughter back from her kidnappers. Woo-wee, it wasn't that hard, but it's exhausting. So as they all waited patiently for their orders to come, Naruto barged in inside, looking slightly annoyed._

"_Naruto-kun!" Lee greeted, motioning the kyuubi boy to sit down beside him. Tenten flashed a tired smile as Neji only gave a little nod, and they went back into talking about something Lee would never find out. Looking at Naruto's annoyed face, he asked, "What happened, Naruto-kun?"_

"_That Sasuke-teme!" complained Naruto, bursting out madly as Neji and Tenten stopped their chatting. They were getting slightly annoyed, but yet interested in Naruto's sudden outburst. Neji, especially, because he has heard the 'That Sasuke-teme!' sentence from his mouth and decided that Sasuke was one he could considered quite strong - in other words, his rival. "He doesn't want to tell Sakura-chan that he likes her badly!"_

_Neji gave a small sigh and turned towards Tenten again. Uchiha Sasuke's love interests didn't make him interested. Not one bit. But as he did that, he realized that Tenten was the one who was interested in the topic. She scooted closer to Lee and pointed at Naruto's nose, "So how are you going to solve that?"_

"_By doing... things." Naruto replied uncertainly. "I don't know. It just bugs me so much that they actually like each other, but their pride gets in the way. Or something like that." He frowned, "I don't know."_

_Tenten chuckled gleefully. "You do know that Sasuke is jealous of you, right, Naruto?" She asked, remembering how she and Neji saw the Uchiha storming off into his apartment flat, complaining out loud how the 'dobe' was always bothering him. Neji smirked at the sentence, slowly slurping in his ramen - he disliked these things, but Tenten has practically dragged him here, so he has no other choice._

"_Jealous?" Naruto furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Why?"_

"_Nothing." The weapon mistress rolled her eyes. It was futile trying to talk reasons with the boy, but let's just make things a little more interesting, shall we? She hid a mischievous grin forming on her lips and quickly turned at Naruto again, "Maybe... Maybe you should try to make him jealous, you know."_

"_Why?" _

"_Well, for one thing, being jealous usually lights up your determination." Tenten rolled her eyes again. She was no good in describing this kind of things. She slacked off in her chair, glancing at Neji, half-expecting that he would jump in to help her or something, but she also knew by heart that he wasn't going to. _

"_Yes... Tenten is right." Lee suddenly butted in, giving Tenten the unexpected help from an unexpected person. His eyes shone, as Tenten remembered that he was long over the pink-haired kunoichi. "I'll help you, Naruto-kun!" Lee yelled excitedly, shaking Naruto's shoulder roughly._

"_Oh... oh, okay!" Naruto grinned in relief. _

_-end flashback-_

Lee nodded to himself. Naruto was a kind, fine man, although he was one he considered his rival, too. Yes, yes, Lee will help Naruto. He turned towards Sakura, his heart racing as his big eyes shone.

"Sakura-san... would you be my girlfriend?"

And immediately, the world came crumbling down.

**.: to be continued :.**

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**End Notes**

Aww, the world came crumbling down (smack myself of stupidity). Oh well, any suggestions on how to improve my grammar?

Please review and thanks!


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